That is the unavoidable question for all upon first seeing the name of
our ensemble, "Piano Duo Polyhymnia." I'll explain briefly.

When considering a name, I immediately excluded any incorporation of
"Thompson," since that name is far too common, and, in fact, associated
with many musicians of genres that contrast utterly with our classical
focus. While it might prove beneficial in attracting potential
audience members who already know us, I do not believe that it would be
helpful beyond that. "Thompson Piano Duo" sounds colorless to me
-- just another husband and wife team, but without the impact of,
say, "Klien," or "Casadesus." Given that our programs are not
typical, I inclined to something more exotic. The Greek Muses
were an obvious place to start looking.

With reference to
language, the most striking gift of the Muses is the
term mousikē. Once descriptive of all that was thought
to come within
their varied domain, it underwent a reductive process to become the
modern conception of ‘music’. 1

With nine muses to consider, it may seem at first glance that I chose
the "wrong" muse. Euterpe is most often associated with music in
modern descriptions. However, the lines between the muses are very
gray, and the music with which Euterpe is most frequently associated is
folk song, and her instrument, the aulos, or the flute. The music
that we most often perform demands a special respect, and, in fact,
qualifies as sacred to us. Hence the choice of Polyhymnia, muse
of "many hymns." Note in the excerpt below from Grove's that all
but two of the Muses are associated with music in some fashion.

The Muses were worshipped
at Pieria in Thessaly (near Mount Olympus)
and Mount Helicon in Boeotia; similar cults were found elsewhere in
Greece. They had particular fields of activity attributed to them
principally in the literature and art of the later Roman Empire,
although the distinctions among the fields are somewhat blurred: Clio
(history, shown in representational art with the kithara), Euterpe
(lyric, shown with the double aulos), Thalia (comedy, light poetry, the
idyll), Melpomene (tragedy, Aeolic poetry and songs of mourning),
Terpsichore (choral lyric and dance, shown with the lyre), Erato (song
and the dance, and erotic lyric, sometimes shown with the lyre),
Polymnia or Polyhymnia (hymns, dance and mime, shown with the
barbitos), Urania (astronomy) and their chief, Calliope or Calliopea
(heroic poetry and playing on string instruments) – the true leader of
the Muses being of course Apollo Mousagētēs.1

As a final note of interest, although I did not know about Polyhymnia's
association with the barbitos when I chose the name, it so happens that
the barbitos is another appropriate association to be made with our
ensemble. The first recital we gave after having formally become
"Piano Duo Polyhymnia" was one of our "Music and Wine Series" recitals,
and the barbitos is typically associated with wine parties.

Greek instrument of the
Lyre family (a Chordophone ). In Greek
literature and vase painting it is generally associated with the
Eastern Greek poets (including Terpander, Sappho, Alcaeus and Anacreon)
of the Archaic period (7th and 6th centuries bce ), and with drinking
parties.2

Our "Music and Wine Series" recitals are a specialty of ours, given
every three months, and a favorite of many of our regular audience
members. They are parties, and they involve the moderate drinking
of wine, so the association is reasonably appropriate.

I now include a more thorough description of the barbitos for those who
are curious.

The barbitos is usually
portrayed as having a tortoise-shell soundbox,
long curved arms (probably made of wood) joined together by a crossbar
at the top, and five to seven strings supported by a bridge and sounded
with a plectrum attached to the instrument by a cord. The strings are
attached at the crossbar by means of tuning devices called kollopes
(pegs). The arms, which diverge as they leave the soundbox, curve
towards each other near the top of the instrument, forming a
distinctive shape. Rare profile views indicate that the arms curved
forwards as well as outwards. The longer string length as compared to
the schoolboy's tortoise-shell lyre suggests a relatively lower pitch.2